Marcia Sears, former publisher of area newspapers including the Shelby County Reporter and the first woman to lead the Alabama Press Association, died on Sunday, April 13, 2014. She was 86.

MONTEVALLO,
Alabama -- Marcia Sears, former owner of area newspapers including the
Shelby County Reporter and the first woman to lead the Alabama Press Association,
died on Sunday, April 13, 2014. She was 86.

A memorial service for the longtime Montevallo resident will
happen at 11 a.m. on Thursday at Montevallo Presbyterian Church. In lieu of
flowers, friends can make donations to Parnell Memorial Library Foundation at
277 Park Drive, Montevallo, AL 35115.

Sears left behind a legacy in Alabama journalism. Together
with her husband, Ralph Sears, a notable former City Councilman and mayor of
Montevallo who died in 1996, they had purchased WBYE Radio in Calera and later the
Shelby County Reporter, according to her obituary.

During the '60s and '70s, the couple reported on Shelby
County events. "Under their watchful eyes the region changed from segregated to
integrated, from rural to suburban and from linotype to computers," her
obituary states.

"Marcia enjoyed collaborating with editors from around
Alabama. She was the first woman to head the Alabama Press Association, which
gave her its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003. In 1984 they sold the news
organizations, which by then included the Childersburg Star and the Coosa
Press," according to her obituary.

She is survived by her sister, Joan Mockett Casari, of
Omaha, Neb., as well as three children, including Steven and Patsy Sweeney
Sears of Montevallo; Sally and Richard Belcher of Atlanta; and Randie and David
Rosenberg of Midlothian, Va.